This Vikings-Steelers trade needs to happen if Minnesota signs Kyler Murray

Kyler Murray just became one of the most popular names in the NFL’s free agency market after the Arizona Cardinals intend to release him when the new league year starts. There will be plenty of teams interested in landing the former No. 1 overall pick, but one team in particular might be really aggressive to avoid fumbling another quarterback in the open market. If the Minnesota Vikings turn to Murray, it all but confirms J.J. McCarthy is out the door. 

If so, the Pittsburgh Steelers could swoop in to save themselves from their revolving door at quarterback. Since Ben Roethlisberger retired after the 2021 season, Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph, Russell Wilson, Justin Fields and Aaron Rodgers have all started games. On top of that, they’ve essentially reduced themselves to one-year quarterback rentals. Landing McCarthy would finally give them a long term answer; and give Mike McCarthy his next project under center. 

J.J. McCarthy to the Steelers would finally end their revolving door of quarterbacks

Trading for McCarthy doesn’t immediately give Pittsburgh their long term answer under center, but it does give them a former first round quarterback that still has enough upside to be better than what they currently have. Do the Steelers really want to spend another offseason playing the Aaron Rodgers game? Trading for McCarthy should give them insurance they don’t have to. It also lets them use their first round pick wisely instead of gambling on someone like Ty Simpson. 

Pittsburgh will either save McCarthy’s career or showcase just how much of a gamble it was to take him in the first round. The Steelers will be patient with him if history repeats itself and that could allow McCarthy to continue to grow. Without Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh no longer has the pressure of winning just enough games. They’ll be able to go through growing pains and figure out exactly what the direction of this team can be. 

This mock trade will give J.J. McCarthy a real chance to grow as an NFL quarterback

The Steelers should be interested in landing McCarthy if they can for a couple of reasons. For one, it would mean they’re accepting it’s finally time to start truly rebuilding. McCarthy, at one point, was worth being a franchise quarterback and that can still be the case. The way things are going in Minnesota, it’s clear Kevin O’Connell was forced to turn to McCarthy a lot earlier than maybe he wanted to. 

Because of that, he deserves to be somewhere he’s wanted. If Pittsburgh trades for him, they clearly want him. This also means the Steelers would need to build around McCarthy. They need to improve the run game and get one more perimeter weapon. One of the reasons the Steelers struggled a year ago was the lack of weapons. 

Jaylen Warren might be good, but he’s not your typical feature back, which is why they can’t expect the run offense to improve without improving the running back room. McCarthy has to grow himself, but he can’t do that with an organization that doesn’t invest in roster. The Steelers would need to do that if they go all in on McCarthy. 

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